Good tool set under 200$ ???

[pandaiswong]

No snap-on for $200 lol. I do love my snap-on ratchet, but it was $75 alone.

[george graves]

Craftsman is a perfectly respectable thing to get. There are guys on here that work on car for a living, and they move on to a bit more of a "pro" set - for good reason.

But if you're starting out - you won't go wrong with a Craftsman set.

[3vilE30]

If you have a Costco membership go pick up the 150 piece Craftsman set from Costco for $70-100 depending on what level of discounting they currently have going on. It's old stock that's still Made in the US and much nicer then the newer Craftsman stuff sitting on the shelves of most Sears stores now that's made in China.

The Husky stuff at Home Depot looks pretty decent these days, Lowe's Kobalt line used to be pretty solid but their newer stuff is a bit more hit or miss quality/pricewise.

^ This
Also the Chinese made craftsman stuff feels cheap.
I have random sockets laying around and sometimes I can't find 3/8 version of a specific size so I just use a 1/2 to 3/8 adapter I've had from the 90's well one day I some how managed to tweak it. Went to Sears and got a free new replacement bascially the first time I used it the 3/8 head sheared right off lol

[ThatOneEuroE30]

Good tool set under 200$ ???

Craftsman is a perfectly respectable thing to get. There are guys on here that work on car for a living, and they move on to a bit more of a "pro" set - for good reason.

But if you're starting out - you won't go wrong with a Craftsman set.

Yup I got my kobalt set right now which is great but I'll soon be trading my job all set for a Mac/snap on set only because that's the line of work I'll be in.

[ajackz]

All of my hand tools are from harbor freight. Can't beat lifetime replacement.


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[Nick_S]

I bought a nice snap on kit for like $189 years ago and it has served me extremely well. I normally have to buy a fe special tools here and there but it's a good set.

[mrsleeve]

I buy my tools at Harborfreight. People says it is cheap and not of high quality. So far, all of my tools work as advertised. I have not experienced any bad tool yet.

you have never used good tools then, even old WORN OUT cast finish Cman are way better then the best H/F can ever hope to offer.

take any pittsburg wrench you have and tighten a bolt up as tight as you till you start to round it off. Then go get a Snap On, and continue to tighten, Your going to SNAP that fucker off. You can do the same with a Facom, old S&K supper Chrome, Proto, Matco and similar quality tools H/F are the tools of a butcher. Will they work in a pinch yeah "maybe" if what your working on is not too rusty and old and corroded

What george said is very true nothing wrong with getting a decent set of Cman stuff, but it is sad that much of it is made in china now and the quality is dropping off fast.

[nugentnsb]

http://www.halfords.com/motoring/garage-equipment/socket-sets/halfords-advanced-professional-150-piece-socket-ratchet-spanner-set

[mitchlikesbikes]

most craftsman stuff is good. i'm a bit of a tool snob but will still buy certain things in craftsman and sometimes harbor freight. harbor freight stuff is good in a pinch or if you're not going to be using it all the time.

that being said for the set/pricepoint you want craftsman is the way to go. if you can extend your budget a bit blue point is also great. blue point is made to the same specs as snapon but made in taiwan instead of the US so it's cheaper. from what i've experienced the quality is pretty much just as good though. i won a basic blue point set in high school from an auto competition and every tool in it is still in great shape after quite a bit of use. a basic blue point set does retail for 300+ though.

[dnguyen1963]

you have never used good tools then, even old WORN OUT cast finish Cman are way better then the best H/F can ever hope to offer.

take any pittsburg wrench you have and tighten a bolt up as tight as you till you start to round it off. Then go get a Snap On, and continue to tighten, Your going to SNAP that fucker off. You can do the same with a Facom, old S&K supper Chrome, Proto, Matco and similar quality tools H/F are the tools of a butcher. Will they work in a pinch yeah "maybe" if what your working on is not too rusty and old and corroded

What george said is very true nothing wrong with getting a decent set of Cman stuff, but it is sad that much of it is made in china now and the quality is dropping off fast.

Yeah, there are many non-mechanics E30 onwers. I don't use my tools daily, and for more than fifteen years, I have not had any problems with HF tools. I cannot justify for expensive tools with the type of usage I have. You get what you paid for. HF tools are adequate for average users.

[Reichart12]

Wow I always thought tools would be more expensive, Ive been freeloading off my dads wrenchs and things while I live at home. Sorry to thread jack but whats a good tool to add to a collection after having the basic ratchet/sockets/wrenches?

[BobombETA]

Wow I always thought tools would be more expensive, Ive been freeloading off my dads wrenchs and things while I live at home. Sorry to thread jack but whats a good tool to add to a collection after having the basic ratchet/sockets/wrenches?

Air compressor and an impact wrench.

Or a good electric impact.

Impact.

[TimKninja]

For anyone wrenching on the weekend, craftsman is excellent.

Im a full time Automotive Technician and I use craftsman sockets and extentions all of the time. well mostly because I loose sockets sometimes.

Harbor Freights sockets are ok too. Have yet to break any (that I can recall) . just know their ratchets are gonna suck, and expect everything else from them to not last more then one job.

[frolf]

Wow I always thought tools would be more expensive, Ive been freeloading off my dads wrenchs and things while I live at home. Sorry to thread jack but whats a good tool to add to a collection after having the basic ratchet/sockets/wrenches?

Penetrating Oil
Hand Sledge
Impact Wrench (air/electric, whatever)
Breaker Bar
Torque Wrench
Chisel

I use my impact wrench for speed more than anything, and I rarely use it to put stuff on. As bad as it sounds, it helps a ton to use an electric impact when using spring compressors. You can go back and forth so fast and get them on and off quickly.

[blunttech]

As bad as it sounds, it helps a ton to use an electric impact when using spring compressors. You can go back and forth so fast and get them on and off quickly.

especially when you get the wrong struts and have to do the job multiple times


Did the dash make it ok??